BABEL IN PALESTINE.

New Zealand Herald, Volume LX, Issue 18341, 6 March 1923, Page 5

BABEL IN PALESTINE.

TOO MANY LANGUAGES. ARABS AND THE x JEWS. KING'S BIRTHDAY INCIDENT. One of the fundamental principles of the British Constitution has been forgotten in Palatine, writes Mr. E. B. Whittaker, special correspondent of the Lon--don Daily Express in Palestinee. Wherever else the British flag has flown there has been, as an almost universal rule, not only an official attitude of tolerance toward all religions, but special precaution to ensure to all freedom of worship according to their beliefs. In Palestine the Administration have forrotten this principle. They are giving definite support to a creed whi&'i is not even the most widely accepted creed in the community. The country is not only to be a home for the Jew 3, but it is to be a place where their susceptibilities in religious matters must be considered above all other things.

Last year the King's Birthday fell on a Saturday—June 3. This day is honoured throughout the Empire by official ceremonial in which, the people join. In Palestine, whatever may be the Arab's opinion of English politicians, he is definitely loyal to the King. A Moral Victory. Saturday is the Jewish Sabbath, and to the amazement of the people Sir Wyndham Deedes, the Chief Secretary, acting as head of the Administration in the absence of Sir Herbert Samuel, announced that the celebration of the King's Birthday would be postponed until Monday, June 5. The daj arrived, and the appointed ceremonies took place, but none of the Moslem dignitaries appeared. The Grand Mufti, the head of the Moslem community, a man of ability and charm, received the usual formal command and. after due consideration, decided to ignore it, an action in which he was followed by the majority of his people. He was summoned to Government House to explain his contumacy. He explained that he had held special services on June 3, which was the true birthday of the King, a date which nobody had power to alter. He could not admit the light of a minority in the State to dictate to him and his in a matter so important. This incident has never before received publicity in England, but the impression in Palestine has endured and has produced a further feeling of distrust throughout the country. Nobody of sense fails to see that the Grand Mufti "cored a distinct moral victory. A Confusion of Tongues. A walk through the streets of Jerusalem will five the keen observer a fair idea of the language difficulties at the Tower of Babel. One minute the language of the Ukraine may be heard, and a second later a dialect of Poland, French, German, Spanish, Greek, Yiddish are heard on all sides. No fewer than 47 languages are in common use in Palestine. Before the British occupation it is doubtful if more than a quarter of these were in use. The majority of tongues have come with the Jews who emigrated from Central Europe. The vast majority of the inhabitants, including the Palestinian Jews, are able to speak Arabic. Few know any Hebrew. Yet one of the first acts of the Administration was to add Hebrew to English and Arabic as the official languages in which all proclamations and statements must be issued.

In consequence, even the street names have to appear in the three languages. The irony of it all is that the Jews themselves have to be taught Hebrew, their own selected official language. Heavy Coat Involved. Dr. Weizmaim and the Zionists have in the past endeavoured to compel Jewish schools to teach Hebrew only, even to the exclusion of English. They may have had some success in this endeavour, but I know that they have failed ignominiously in the case of some of the greater schools. The cost of the three official languages is enormous. All courts of law must be prepared to carry on their proceedings in any of the three languages. Court documents, records of evidence, summons, and writs have to be made out in the official language of the parties in the case, and have to be translated, for the information of the Court. The official gazette and all published Government papers must be printed in all three languages. Those who know the cost of printing will realise how much money drifts away in this direction. ' The Arabs naturally are much perturbed by the state of affairs. They point out that 80 per cent, of the taxpapers are Arabs and that more than 90 per cent; speak Arabic. The money subscribed by these people for the maintenance of their own country is wasted in part in. the revival of what is practically a dead language. Great Britain alone is to blame. The Zionists argue that the revival of L<brew is necessary in order to create a genuine national spirit among the Jews. A cynic has said that when last the whole of the Jewish race spoke Hebrew they ceased to be a nation.